Rights groups say there has been an explosion in racist violence over the past year, with a notable surge since national elections in May and June that saw dramatic gains by the far-right Golden Dawn party.

Simple fist beatings have
escalated to assaults with metal bars, bats, and knives. Another new element: ferocious dogs used to terrorize the victims.

‘‘Violence is getting wilder and wilder and we still have the same pattern of attacks, committed by groups of people in quite an organized way,’’ said Kostis Papaioannou, former head of the Greek National Commission for Human Rights.